The Belly of the Beast
by NebulousMistress
Summary: Dragon AU. There's a philosophy in the Ghost Zone. 'Death is Life'. But what does it mean? Chapters posted out of order. Now Playing: Inconvenience
1. Swallowed Whole

A new AU to goof off in.

This story, more like a series of connected stories, begins with Million Dollar Ghost and those final moments when Vlad acquires the Skeleton Key right before being eaten alive by the Behemoth who guarded it.

This chapter was written entirely by the Nebulous Mistress. It was just going to be thrown into the Shorts collection and the day called when one Tangerine Catnip, who inspired the whole danged idea, decided we should do more with it. Thus some chapters are pulled from refurbished RP logs; these chapters are marked as such (and generally contain porn).

'Swallowed Whole' is rated T for themes of vore and forced transformation.

* * *

The Behemoth descended. Vlad barely had the chance to look up from his crystalline prize before the monster's mouth engulfed him. He struggled against the monster's tongue, trying to escape but unwilling to give up his prize. But he failed. The Behemoth swallowed its prey, its four clawed hands going to its belly. Its tongue lolled in contentment.

"Butter biscuits!" Vlad shouted, the sound muffled by the belly of the monster closing in around him. He wrapped his arms around the crystal case, within it the Skeleton Key he'd searched long and hard for. He wasn't giving this up.

Soft slimy walls closed in all around him, holding him still, preventing him from thrashing about to escape. He gasped at the sensation, as gentle pressure wrapped around him entirely from his feet to his scalp. He clutched the Key's case to his chest, worried it would somehow be stolen from him. But the monster's belly made no such attempt, instead pressing against him on all sides with soft and wet.

His eyes fell closed. He didn't want to deal with stomach acid in his eyes, that was it. But there was a glaring lack of acid around him. Not a single note of pain jolted through him. In fact the ache of being trounced by Jack Fenton began to lessen as muscles unclenched and bruises were soothed.

Vlad sighed. It was easy to forget where he was as slimy walls pressed in on him, engulfed him. And then they began to shift. He came back to reality, squirmed and shifted as his legs were folded up and tucked toward his chest. They were pressed against the crystal case before the movement eased, leaving him curled up in the Behemoth's stomach.

He felt around with his hands, felt the slimy walls press back as he searched for some weakness in the stomach wall. He felt nothing useful as he slid his hands through the slime; he couldn't feel any imperfections. He had to get out of here.

But he was getting so tired.

He knew it was dangerous, very dangerous to fall asleep in the belly of anything. He might turn human and suffocate. The stomach walls might decide to excrete acid and he wouldn't be conscious to escape. Or it might do worse.

He squirmed again, feeling the slimy walls clutch him tighter. It felt like an embrace...

The Behemoth was moving. Vlad swore it felt like the creature was rocking back and forth, trying to put him to sleep.

He felt so heavy... And everything around him was so soft, warm, slick... The slime must have some sedating effect... He needed to escape... He needed to...

...to sleep...

Sleep.

* * *

Vlad gasped, his eyes popping open. He panted as he looked around him. He was surrounded, soft pink walls pressing in on him on all sides, he was curled up to protect...

Oh. Right. He remembered what'd happened now. The crystal case still sat cradled in sleep-loosened arms. He was still in his ghost form. But he was still trapped in the monster's belly. He squirmed, trying to stretch out. The walls around him contracted, holding him still even as he tried to move.

It wasn't much use. When he'd reach a new position his fleshy prison would simply curl him back up again. It took effort to remain in any other contortion, effort that he was rapidly finding he did not have. He paused to catch his breath, letting himself be curled back up to his starting position. At least it wasn't uncomfortable. And at least he wasn't immersed in acid yet. But the slimy walls imprisoning him had grown even more wet and he could feel that slick slime permeating all around him. He wasn't sure he'd be able to breathe for much longer.

His prison was like a pocket, a completely contained bubble inside the Behemoth. He felt around for an opening, an entrance or exit or anything... Nothing. He was truly surrounded, completely encased. Engulfed. And his prison was filling with fluid.

Vlad could see the slimy fluid half-immersing the crystal case, could feel it climbing up around him. More than just slimy wet from the walls, this was worse. More. He tried to crane his head up, tried to keep his face out of the rising slime, but the walls kept trying to push his head back down, curl him up, immerse him properly.

Vlad gasped at the exertion, as his tiny bubble of air grew smaller... smaller...

He took one last breath and then he was immersed.

He blinked, his eyes adjusting to the new medium. It didn't feel acidic or even dangerous. It felt... kind of nice...

Vlad shook himself, trying to drag some sense back into himself. He was trapped here, imprisoned in the Behemoth's stomach, immersed in fluid, and now he was down to his last breath of air. He looked down at the crystal case, at its single breath of air within. But even that was a myth, a lie, as a single stream of bubbles hissing from a crack in the crystal stole that from him too. He hugged the case close to his chest. He always knew he was going to die searching for an artifact.

He gave in and exhaled. It was the only sensible thing to do.

He inhaled, felt his lungs fill with fluid. Tiny motes of pain came from his chest as he drowned. But...

Wait a minute...

Vlad gave a few exploratory breaths and then laughed, giddy with relief. He could breathe. He wasn't going to die today. No, not today.

He started feeling around again, searching for some way out.

* * *

The Behemoth reclined on a favorite rock pile near its lair. It rubbed its four clawed hands over its swollen belly and purred, long and low. No matter what the other denizens of the Zone might think, it always did enjoy the aftermath of a good Swallowing. Especially powerful ghosts like this one. That power always did take a long time to break down, making the experience that much longer, more fulfilling. Its tail waved in the aether of the Zone, displaying its contentment as it felt tiny hands sliding along its insides. Looking for a way out, it supposed.

The Behemoth yowled and purred sounds to its belly, to the ghost within. There was no way out now. The ghost's only option was to give in. The Behemoth wondered how long it would take for the ghost to realize that.

* * *

Vlad squirmed and kicked. Sticky fondant, the Behemoth was gloating! That had to be what it was doing. He could feel large hands pressing in on him from outside his flesh prison, could hear its noises reverberating all through his body. The creature had swallowed him whole and now he was going to have to listen to it mock him before he was finally digested.

Vlad snorted in frustration. He had no idea how long he'd been here or even how often he slept. All he knew was he could feel his waking hours shrinking. Soon he wouldn't be able to wake up, kept unconscious by the sedating effect of the darkness and the slime and that creature's damnable purring!

He scraped his fingers across the inside of his prison, trying to grasp some purchase, cause some damage, do anything...

He felt the Behemoth rumble at the sensation. It felt like... laughter?

Vlad roared in frustration and tried to thrash about. He could feel that laughter stop, turn to purring as hands pressed down on him, kept him in place as surely as the walls of his prison.

He didn't want to die here...

But he was so tired...

The Behemoth started to sing, crooning notes of warbled shrieks. Vlad's eyes closed as the monster's lullaby filled his mind.

He didn't want... to die...

* * *

The Behemoth was worried. The ghost in its belly wasn't settling down like he was supposed to. He kept wiggling, protesting, still trying to find a way out. This was not acceptable.

Thus the Behemoth had left behind the comfortable stone of its lair to seek out a voice of wisdom. Someone who could give advice. Someone wreathed in frost and snow.

"Well now, what do we have here?"

The Behemoth rumbled a greeting, slithering through the snow. It swept away the snow to reveal the bare ice. Not quite stone but it would have to do. The Behemoth reclined against the ice, splaying comfortably across the landscape. The bulge in its belly wiggled as the ghost inside protested.

Frostbite clasped his claws together. "Aww, you've Swallowed recently, haven't you? But it hasn't settled down yet?"

Yowl. Purr, growl. The Behemoth slapped its tail against a cliffside, cracking the ice.

"Now, now, no reason to get frustrated," Frostbite said. He climbed up next to the Behemoth and placed his claws on its belly. One furry ear was pressed against its scaly flank. "Hello in there," Frostbite called.

_Get me out of here!_

"In due time, young one."

_No, now!__ Get me out of here __**now!**__  
_

Frostbite petted the scaly belly, both to keep the Behemoth calm as well as to soothe the ghost within. "And why would I do that?"

_I don't want to die in here!_

Frostbite chuckled. "Death is life, young one."

_This is no time to discuss philosophy!_

"It's not philosophy." Frostbite paused. "Well, maybe it is. But it's also truth, young one. You will die. And then you will live again. You have already died once. And you will die again. Just as you live now you will live again. It's the cycle of eternity."

_You're insane._

"And you will understand my madness in time," Frostbite said, patting the Behemoth's swollen belly. "When you're older. You are still so young. Do not rush to grow up but accept it when the time comes. It is the only way to happiness."

The ghost within struggled, growling and snarling. The Behemoth grabbed its belly, distress clearly written on its features.

"Let him wear himself out," Frostbite said. "He'll understand in time. Tell me, how did you manage to find such a powerful young ghost, by the way?"

The Behemoth described its ordeal using yowls, snarls, purrs, and generous waving of four sets of claws. Frostbite nodded, his furry face grave. "So he has the Skeleton Key," he mused. "Dark times are coming for the Realms. There has been prophecy. We will prepare." He patted it's belly. "Take care of this little one."

The Behemoth purred before hoisting itself upright. Its clawed hands went to its belly as it purred and swayed, trying to calm the ghost within.

* * *

Death is life.

That's what the insane ghost had said from the other side of his fleshy prison.

Vlad glared into the darkness, glared at the crystal case that had brought him here in the first place. That he was apparently going to die for.

He had heard the philosophy before. 'Death is life' was a Ghost Zone myth to explain where all of the myriad of creatures within came from, creatures without any living analogue past, present, or future. That a single consciousness would be reincarnated, essentially, into a multitude of bodies. Over time these bodies would be changed, shifted, twisted by the forces of the Zone and that which aided them.

Vlad wasn't sure he liked this philosophy.

He did appreciate the aspect of immortality involved. He could even accept the idea that completely inhuman forms used to be people. But he didn't want to give up his form. Not when he had so much riding on it, so much left to do. And now this, this imprisonment in the Behemoth's belly, he was supposed to just accept this and, what, let himself be digested? Let himself fall asleep and never awaken? Be absorbed into the Behemoth's bulk? Perhaps that's how the creature had grown so large...

No. He would get out of here. Before he was digested.

But he couldn't even summon an ectoblast. He'd tried. It was as though the fluid surrounding him, permeating him, it suppressed his ghost core, cut him off from his powers even as it kept him in ghost form. And trying to access them made him so tired...

And the creature was singing again. Once it had been so foreign to him. Now he almost expected it every time he started to brood. The purring, the warbling, the growling tones...

He relaxed into his prison's fleshy embrace.

Once it had been so monstrous. Now it sounded... nice...

Like a mother's voice...

* * *

Something was different now but Vlad couldn't put his finger on it. Something was vaguely wrong. More than just being here, breathing this fluid, trapped in this belly. It wasn't acid, no, Vlad had almost given up on expecting to ever feel the bite of dissolving acid. It was... different.

There were no days or nights, no possible way to count the time. His own breaths were impossible to trace, not when so much time was spent asleep. He had no heartbeat to pass the time, not in this form. All that he had was the Behemoth's crooning voice, a voice he was coming to expect, to enjoy, even to love. He would find himself curled up here for eternities, listening to its voice. To her voice.

But then he'd remember the crystal case in his arms. And he'd remember why he was here, what he'd come here for. That he had ambitions, needs, tasks, plans outside in the Zone and on Earth. He'd remember that he couldn't stay here. But then he'd hear her voice and he wouldn't want to leave.

Something was happening. Something he couldn't stop. Something he wasn't sure he wanted to stop.

* * *

A clicking sound drew him out of slumber. Vlad opened bleary eyes to see the crystal case, his arms around it. The key had long ago been knocked off its pillow, maybe that was the clicking noise. He gripped it to try and recreate the noise.

His hands felt strange. And they clicked...

Vlad spread his hands, his eyes going wide. His black gloves were shredded at the fingertips, the latex no match for the long black claws that extended from his nailbeds. Thick, menacing, monstrous...

"Ganache truffles," he whispered. He was being... transformed...

He had to get out of here. He looked at his shiny black claws and realized he finally had a way out.

* * *

The Behemoth howled as the ghost within clawed his way out. She snarled, chasing after him as he shot away as fast as his power could carry him. But she couldn't chase him long as he darted through a small portal, too small for her to do much more than grope through. She snarled at him, ordering him to come back. But he was gone.

She growled and stalked off. He wouldn't stay away forever. She'd Swallow him again. And this time he wouldn't claw his way out of her. He'd know better next time. Because next time he'd come to her.

She'd make sure of it.

* * *

Vlad collapsed on the floor of his lab, coughing up clear fluid. He forced it out of his lungs, desperately taking in air to replace it. He had to stop the process. Had to stop the transformation before it progressed and further. Then he could assess the damage, figure out the amount of time he'd lost, gloat over escaping with the crystalline case and its precious contents.

He laid on the floor, gasping. He gazed at his claws, noting their color and sheen. He'd seen claws like this on a dinosaur fossil once. He never thought he'd see them again on a living specimen, much less on himself.

This was unacceptable.

* * *

Weeks.

Almost four weeks.

It had seemed like so much longer than a mere four weeks. Vlad was so very lucky he'd set his companies up to be able to survive without his leadership for long periods like this. Trusted stooges to handle his voting shares, a competent board held in check by loyalty as well as fear, a personal assistant who knew exactly why he would disappear and who kept his secret well. This had been a successful test, his first long unexplained absence in years.

If only everything could be considered such a success.

He'd spent a day with his veins hooked up to an ectofiltrator, trying desperately to remove the offending impurities. The transformation appeared to have been halted but now he was taking stock of what exactly had changed.

The claws were long, black, shining, and very strong. He'd dulled a woodworker's file trying to take the point off of one of them. He'd have to invest in stronger tools, perhaps something diamond-tipped.

Patches of scales marred his otherwise smooth blue skin. Purplish scales on one hip, along one calf, on the backs of his hands and the base of his claws, all along his spine. A ridge of tiny spikes, dull and blunted, followed the line of vertebrae down his back. The scales grew thicker there, almost rough as they surrounded each little bump on that ridge.

He felt bigger, larger around at the chest. He almost felt like he could stretch out a pair of wings on his back if only he tried hard enough. He wasn't sure he wanted to try.

And that wasn't all.

Vlad turned away from the mirror with a sigh. If he could file down these claws his ghost half should be able to pass for himself again. No one would notice.

He took a deep breath and took human form. Blue eyes clamped shut, not wanting to know what had gone wrong there. He faced the mirror and opened one eye.

Wait...

His other eye popped open as he checked everything in the mirror. He laughed to himself, laughter that almost turned hysterical in his relief. He still looked human. There wasn't a thing different about this form.

He sank to the ground and laughed. He was still human.

At least that had gone right for him. And he still had the Skeleton Key...

He smiled at the mirror, an evil predatory grin. He still had the Skeleton Key.

The Ring of Rage and the Crown of Fire would be his...


	2. Dragon's Hoard

Co-written between Tangerine Catnip and NebulousMistress

It's been a year since the Behemoth. A year and Vlad's succumbed to a few... needs. Such as the need to hoard shiny things.

Late season 2, Danny and Vlad have an enemies-with-benefits relationship, and there isn't a clone in sight.

'Dragon's Hoard' is rated M for porns.

* * *

Danny stuck his head through the floor, green eyes scanning the room for any traces of his archenemy. He looked from the four-poster bed to the dresser then back to the large french doors with the stone balcony. Not a single trace of Vlad.

He flew up through the floor and dropped to the carpet. He strained his ears, listening out for any creak that would indicate his enemy was about. He'd been in this room before, many times, but usually in the middle of the night when he was far too busy trying to get Vlad's suit jacket off to have a proper look around. The bedroom was one of the few safe places where they could push aside their roles as archenemies and become archenemies who couldn't keep their hands out of each others pants, though usually it was Vlad who got that honor. Even when Danny was in ghost form Vlad still found some way to turn the tide of battle so Danny was left at his mercy. Worse, Vlad made sure to always take human form when he did, probably to make it even more embarrassing for the teenager.

That was all about to change. Tonight Vlad would reach for his ghost-proof rope and his power inhibitors and find they'd vanished. Danny rubbed his hands together, grinning from ear to ear. First to check the nightstand. He pulled open the drawers. There was a lot of lube in here, including a few flavored ones Danny remembered from the sweet taste they left on his tongue. Vibrating eggs, a copy of businessman weekly and…

The heck?

Danny pulled out a gold statuette studded with rubies and sapphires. It was heavy in his hand, probably solid. He lifted it to the light and marveled at its beauty. He quickly put it back into the drawer.

That was… strange. Sure Vlad was rich but why would he hide something like that in a drawer? Why not put in on display?

Shaking it off, Danny stooped to the carpet to look under the bed. What he saw made his jaw drop. There was a huge pile of coins under the bed: gold, silver, even more mundane currency. There was an inlay in the floor to hold them all, a massive pile stretching almost the entire width of the bed, rising in the middle to touch the bottom of the mattress.

Danny stood up and headed to the dresser. He threw the doors open and jumped back as a flood of gems came pouring out of it. Gems fell like rain, making a huge racket as they bounced across the floor, scattered around the room, bounced off his head...

"Owww! Fuck!"

Danny took to the air. If Vlad was anywhere in the house he would have heard that. He thought about flying away then changed his mind; he wanted to know what the hell was going on and who Vlad had killed to get this stuff. He landed on the bed as he heard hurried steps taking the stairs two at a time. He crossed his arms over his chest and got his frown ready.

* * *

Vlad could hear, could _sense_ that someone was messing with his hoard. His vision went red for a moment before he growled to the empty room. He didn't think, not really. Didn't even remember that Danny was here recovering after a particularly involved battle that had ended with the boy exhausted, far too tired to return home. All that mattered in that moment was surveying the damage, finding the stolen items and then finding the culprit.

He stormed up the stairs, dropping bipedality halfway up them, bounding up them as he snorted. He regained his veneer of humanity at the top of the stairs before bolting to his hoard, his precious hoard. Which was in shambles. A quick sense told him it was all there just... not in place anymore. And there was the culprit sitting on his hoard, on his bed, with the gall to look annoyed at him! "Daniel..." Vlad warned, a growl just under his voice. "What... do you think you're doing?"

Danny raised an eyebrow at Vlad. The man was furious, glaring at him with this predatory look that Danny had never seen before. Part of Danny quailed at the sight but his bravado stepped up to seal his resolve. "Don't you think I should be asking that, Vlad?" he demanded. "What the hell is up with your room? Don't you have a safe for this stuff?"

"There's no safer place than where I can see it, smell it, _feel_ it..." Vlad took a deep breath before he ended up saying anything embarrassing. "Daniel, I'm going to ask you once more. What do you think you're doing with my hoard?"

Danny slid back on the bed. "Your _hoard_?" he asked slowly. Obviously he was staring to wander into serious fruitloop territory. "Look, I was just snooping around. I was expecting to find your dirty laundry, not five billion dollars worth of gold and gems."

Vlad preened as Danny overestimated the worth of Vlad's hoard by several orders of magnitude. "Well, it's not that much," he admitted, smiling sheepishly. "It's just a little bit."

"'Just a little bit'!? Vlad, if someone managed to break into your house they'd faint and have a heart attack! Assuming they didn't get crushed alive by falling gems." Danny got up from the bed and walked up to his enemy, hands on his hips. "This is fruitloopy even for you. Why do you even have this stuff here?"

Vlad took a breath to steady himself. "I can't sleep without it," he admitted. "I haven't been able to since... well, since. It's a need, Daniel. A need to keep my hoard where I can smell it, where I know it's safe!"

"You _need_ it?" Danny asked, giving Vlad an incredulous look. "Is this a half-ghost thing? Collecting treasure? Because it's never happened to me." He looked around the room; maybe it was just his imagination but the room felt different now, like he could feel Vlad's presence in the very walls.

Vlad shook his head. "No, it's not a half-ghost thing. It's a dragon thing." He went still, afraid as he realized what he'd just admitted to. He took a deep breath, steeling himself against the boy's inevitable mocking laughter.

"Are you seriously telling me you're half ghost and part dragon?" Danny threw his hands up in frustration and floated up to Vlad's eye level. "Did you steal one of those dragon amulets that Dora and her brother have? Because I really don't want to have to fight a dragon-you next time you lose out on the stock market."

Well, Danny wasn't laughing. Vlad took a deep breath. "Have you ever heard the philosophy 'death is life', Daniel?" he asked. "I have. And I've had a particularly personal run-in with it. You see... About a year ago..." Vlad sat down and told the tale, part of it anyway, about the Behemoth and his aborted transformation.

Danny settled on the bed to listen. He hadn't known about this monster. He knew Vlad's portal had exploded but not what he'd been doing with it at the time. Honestly, the idea freaked him out. If ever he saw a monster like that in the Zone he'd fly away as fast as he could. He wouldn't wish a fate like this on his worst enemy, not even Vlad.

"So you can only see it in ghost form?" Danny asked. He leaned in close to Vlad, his eyes wide with curiosity. "I can't believe I've never noticed it before. Show me." He tugged on Vlad's arm, drawing even closer.

Vlad watched Danny's face for any sign of mocking or laughter, finding instead... something else. Curiosity. Wonder. An amount of fear. But not the expected laughter. Vlad sighed in relief as he took his ghost form.

"One of the perks of covering myself from the neck down," Vlad said. "I can dictate what is and is not seen. First of all, you'll notice the size difference. When you and I first fought I wasn't this large. Then one seemingly random day I was. It wasn't my decision." He stripped off his gloves and wiggled his scaled fingers. It always felt good to allow his claws to unsheathe like this, even if those claws had been buffed down to nubs. "If I let them grow they'd end up a little over two inches long. And they sharpen with use. Like honing a blade..." He held out a hand for Danny to inspect.

Danny took Vlad's hand in both of his, drawling his fingers over the palm and towards the claws. They grew from where his fingernails should be, curving gently over the end of the finger. The tips were clipped dull but still sharp enough puncture flesh if he tried.

There were scales as well, small ones on the fingers the same blue as Vlad's skin. Scales that covered the back of Vlad's hands before fading into the skin of his wrists.

Danny traced a finger up and down those scales, finding them smooth like snakeskin. Warmth flushed to his cheeks as Danny had the oddest urge. He obeyed before letting himself question it, running his tongue over a finger. The scaly texture felt even stranger on his tongue. He closed his lips around a clawed finger, licking and sucking.

Vlad hissed before a proper moan broke through. It faded into a long slow purr. He never let himself be touched like this, not in his ghost form, not since the Behemoth. Danny's tongue felt strange on his scales, soft, the gentlest of pressure. He hissed again before gently tugging his hand away.

Danny whined softly but he let Vlad take his hand back; he wanted to see the rest anyway. He shifted closer and pawed at the front of Vlad's suit, looking for a way to detach it. "Can I see the rest? You mentioned scales on your back?" He grinned when he found the zipper, pulling it down and exposing the broad shoulders and chest that Vlad claimed his unfinished transformation had given him.

Vlad unfastened his belt and then slid off his tunic. He turned around so Danny could see his spinal ridge. The scales here were darker than the ones on his fingers, thicker. More armored. As a dragon he'd need such armor over his spine to protect himself from other predators. But now it was merely an inconvenience that prevented him from bending backwards when he needed to.

Danny leaned forward, pressing himself against Vlad's back as he moved in to look at the scales on his shoulders. The texture was rougher here; he could feel the hardness of the scales. Each one felt like it was made of steel, the plates overlapping one another to deal with movement from the man underneath them. He ran his hands down Vlad's back, down then up and back down. They were rough, almost sharp when rubbed against their direction but silky smooth when rubbed with it.

Vlad arched back into the sensation of hands on his scales. He knew that if he'd had wings they would be spread wide, giving the boy as much access as possible.

Danny leaned close and trailed his tongue down Vlad's spine. The scales were warm and tasted nothing like metal. Rather there was a faint hint of salt and an odd musky smell that made Danny want to squirm. Dragon pheromones maybe? He honestly had no idea.

Vlad gasped as he felt hands replaced by a tongue, a wet gentle pressure that he wasn't accustomed to at all. He started purring again. His hands groped for something to hold onto.

Danny followed the scales down Vlad's spine, kissing and licking them. He tried to bite one but couldn't get purchase. He worked down Vlad's lower back, resting his hands on the elder's hips. The trail of scales disappeared into the lower half of Vlad's suit. Danny slipped his fingers into the waist of Vlad's pants, unfastening them and drew them down.

Vlad purred as he felt air on his skin, all of it. "There's... there's more..." he groaned before he felt those hands again on his skin, cutting off his voice.

"More?" Danny asked. "On your legs you mean?" He pulled Vlad onto the bed with him and phased off the elder's pants and boots. More scales on his legs, patches of them. Smaller claws on his feet. But...

Danny's jaw fell open as his eyes were drawn between Vlad's legs. Blue and purple scales crossed his hips and the inside of his thighs. Between them hung a set of balls, held close to Vlad's body and somewhat larger than his human set. But where his cock should be...

Danny tilted his head, feeling somewhat disappointed. A horizontal vent sat there, a bulge below it, fine belly-scales covering the area. "Is this why you didn't want to have sex with me in your ghost form?" Danny asked. "You don't have a..." He trailed off.

_Don't have a..._ Vlad chuckled darkly. "You don't know how dragons work, do you," he said. He grasped Danny's hand and drew it to his vent. He purred as he drew Danny's finger along the slit, dipped them inside just the tiniest bit.

Danny felt questions rise to his lips but kept them to himself; he figured he'd find out soon enough anyway. He settled onto his tummy on the bed.

Danny recognized same smell from earlier but it was so much stronger here. He repeated the motion Vlad had shown him, sliding his fingers into that vent. The skin inside was soft and very warm. Danny licked his lips and rested his head on Vlad's hip. Then he noticed it. The bulge under his vent was growing, the slit being pushed open from the inside. Skin pulled back naturally as blood fled south.

Danny shivered, scared but curious. He closed his eyes and ran his tongue up the side. It tasted just like Vlad's human cock, maybe a little stronger, but felt different. The skin was leathery and pliant and the heat was intense. Danny took hold of it with one hand, stroking the shaft and licking the head.

Vlad thrust into Danny's hand, felt the slide of fingers against smooth skin. He growled in need as he felt the boy's tongue tasting him. He could smell his own musk, the same scent he'd rubbed all over his hoard. Now Danny was going to smell like him, smell owned. The mere idea left Vlad needing to take the boy, to scent him so thoroughly it would never wash off. Glowing red eyes darted down to Danny, a possessive growl on his lips as he bared his fangs.

"Relax, Vlad" Danny murmured "I just want to see…" His voice trailed off as he opened his eyes and saw what he was holding in his hands. "Holy shit…" A spike of fear and arousal hit at the same time, leaving the poor boy confused.

The head of Vlad's cock was tapered, narrow at the tip but widening quickly with three concentric ridges. The shaft was wider than anything Danny had ever seen on a human. It curved upwards slightly. Then... oh god... Danny shivered as he touched the base. There was a bulge in the bottom third almost the size of his fist. If he was ever on the receiving end of this thing... Danny gulped, getting the sinking feeling he had just blundered into the deep end of the pool without knowing how to swim. "V-Vlad?"

Clawed hands reached out to grab the boy before he could back away. Vlad licked his lips as he purred. He could tell Danny was afraid. Afraid but very aroused. He pushed the boy onto the bed, laid him down on his hoard. Vlad undulated as he crawled up to cover Danny, shifted from side to side like a snake. "You want to know how it feels?" he asked in a long, low hiss. His claws went to Danny's ghost suit, tearing it open at the neck.

Danny's suit ripped around his shoulders and back leaving only his gloves and ribbons off black spandex trailing off them. He pushed against Vlad's chest, a long whine filing the air as he tried to free himself from Vlad's hold. "No! I-I mean- I don't…" He stammered, unable to put two words together. Danny rolled over onto his back and scrabbled at the bedframe, trying to pull himself out from under Vlad.

Vlad grabbed Danny around the waist and pulled him back, kept him from escaping. "You should know how rare it is to lay with a dragon on their hoard," he purred. "Dragons don't just share their hoards with anyone. A hoard needs to be treasured, protected, kept safe and undamaged. Just as I wouldn't dare hurt you, not like this..."

Vlad slid his hands along Danny's smooth skin, so fragile. It took effort not to mark him, not to draw his claws along pale skin, not to simply flip him over, bite down on the nape of his neck, and make him take his cock. He found himself licking Danny's neck, nuzzling him. The boy had a smell that Vlad needed to mar.

Danny shivered uncontrollably. He could feel how hard own cock was, straining against the front of the bottom half of his suit. His imagination pulled at him, visions of blinding pleasure and pain fighting with one another. He twisted and glanced up at Vlad, the huge form of the half-dragon towering over him. Vlad was already taller than him; this just made it worse. "It… it won't fit, Vlad," he stammered. "Even if you're careful I don't know if I can..." He glanced down and forgot to breathe.

Vlad licked the boy's ear, laved him with his tongue. "It'll fit," he purred. "I'll be gentle. I promise it'll feel so good." He rubbed his unsheathed cock against Danny's leg. A drop of precum leaked out, was spread against the fabric of Danny's suit. He moved down, licking as he went, nipping along Danny's neck to his shoulder. "It'll feel so good," he said again. He nuzzled into Danny's chest and purred.

Danny moaned, his hands going around Vlad's shoulders. The pinpricks of pain from those fangs were always enough to set him off. His eyes shut tight and he found himself lifting his hips, rubbing his clothed erection against Vlad's unsheathed cock. Danny swore loudly and looked into Vlad's red eyes as the elder pulled back. He seemed so gentle for a beast... but would it last once he got what he wanted?

"Okay," Danny whispered. He wiggled out from under Vlad enough to reach the nightstand and pull out the largest bottle of lube he could reach. "Just... use lots of lube first... okay?" Still trembling, Danny poured out two handfuls, taking Vlad in both hands and coating his shaft in it. He could hear his heart pounding in his chest; he knew he was going to regret this when he had to wake up tomorrow morning.

Vlad moaned and thrust into Danny's hand as he was slathered with lube. He wanted to hold the boy down and take him right then and there. But he'd promised to be gentle, he wasn't going to break his toy so soon and ensure this never happened again. He fixed Danny with a lustful red stare. "Stretch yourself," he purred. "I want to watch you..."

Danny nodded and swallowed, his hands fumbling with the waistband of his pants to pull them down. Vlad growled impatiently, his claws making short work of the thin spandex and leaving Danny with only the severed leggings of his suit ending where they reached his upper thighs.

His fingers where already slick so Danny only had to spread his legs and press his fingertips to his entrance. He could feel how tense he was. He couldn't take two fingers, let alone Vlad's shaft; he needed to relax.

Danny's free hand went to his mouth, biting down on his knuckles as he pushed inside. His cock twitched between his legs at the first twinges of pleasure, his head falling back against the mattress as he added another finger. He'd had enough anal sex that the process of preparation was almost soothing, something normal despite the strangeness. He opened his eye and saw Vlad watching. He flipped onto his belly and shoved his ass in the air. He loved showing off. He scissored himself with his two fingers, wiggling his hips as he gave Vlad a perfect view of the hole he was going to fuck.

Vlad sniffed the air. He could tell when the tension turned into something different, something more... He purred as Danny fingered himself, as he propped himself up for easy viewing, for easy penetration. He grasped the boy's hips with his claws and pulled Danny's hand away. He was prepared enough. Vlad couldn't, wouldn't wait any longer. Not if he was going to remain gentle. He leaned bodily onto Danny's back, licking the boy on the nape of his neck. Clawed hands came up to Danny's shoulders, holding him still as Vlad covered him, licked him, held him down with his weight. Kept him from trying to fly away.

Danny felt licking; was Vlad's tongue longer when he was in dragon mode or what that just his imagination? He hardly felt it anyway, he was too focused on what he knew was about to happen as he felt the shaft of Vlad's cock rubbed against his slick hole.

The heat pressed against Danny's ass then slipped inside. He could feel the ridges as they entered, as they teased his insides. Warm precome leaked from the tip, somehow felt even hotter than Vlad's shaft. He barely felt Vlad's fangs as the elder bit the back of his neck and growled. The ridged head pressed deeper as Vlad eased himself in, the shaft growing thicker near the base. Danny felt its curve working against his body's own, making the ridges tease him from the inside.

A flash of pain and Danny cried out. Vlad pulled out just a little bit, just enough that he wasn't pressing his knot against the boy's hole. He arched back and purred. He licked the bite-mark he'd left before nipping down to his shoulder blades. There should be wings here... Vlad slowly pulled out and then thrust back in, setting up a lazy rhythm. That rhythm grew faster, a little harder as he felt the boy relax.

Danny was shaking all over. He hadn't noticed before but the cock inside him felt firmer than mere flesh. When it thrust into him he stretched to accommodate it. The ridges might as well have been made of armored scales. His arms collapsed, dropping him to the bed. He heard Vlad's snarl as he slipped out and took the chance to roll onto his back.

Vlad let the boy roll over, thrusting harshly back into him as he did. Danny spread his legs as wide as they would go as he felt the ridges of Vlad's cock pressing on him from the inside. Vlad grabbed Danny's legs, pressing them into his chest. From this angle he could thrust in deeper, felt the knot hit Danny's hole with every thrust. Vlad growled, a long low sound of pleasure as he breached the boy's ass with his knot, forcing it inside.

Danny's pupils were blown wide, his eyes silently pleading with Vlad to ease up on him but the elder was too far gone to notice. Danny's mouth opened to a string of pathetic whines. He looked down, the both of them watching as Vlad's knot went in. The stretch was intense. It burned but it felt so dammed good. He... he couldn't...

Halfway through the slow slide Vlad snapped his hips forward, burying himself to the hilt. Black spots clouded Danny's vision and he barely heard his own scream. The rush of pleasure came hard and Danny couldn't do anything to stop it. He squirmed, bliss overtaking him completely before he came crashing down to realize he'd cum from just feeling Vlad fully penetrate him. At least it was in... Oh god was it in... Danny wondered if it would ever come out again. He could feel the stretch in his ass, the strain in his hips, the ridged tip deeper than he ever thought possible.

Vlad arched back and howled as he was squeezed by Danny's orgasm. The spasms slowed and the scent of Danny's cum filled his nose. Vlad growled, declaring ownership of this boy, his bitch. He would make sure the boy smelled like him. Vlad started to thrust again, small thrusts so he wouldn't slam his swelling knot in and out of Danny's tender hole.

Danny closed his eyes; post-orgasm he was looser, the pain was gone and left him with... He moaned again, waves of pleasure crashing though him as Vlad shifted inside. The knot was so thick and getting bigger; it pressed against his prostate so perfectly that every movement caused another spike of sensation.

Danny wiggled and wrapped his legs around Vlad's hips, pulling the elder as close as he could. Vlad hissed, dropping his weight onto his hands. He grunted as he pulled his knot out and pushed it back in, felt the boy's legs tighten around him. He began to thrust again, gaining force as he shoved his knot past the boy's orgasm-loosened hole. He was so close... And yet he needed...

Danny clawed at Vlad's chest. He moaned Vlad's name, almost incoherent. He could hardly believe this was happening, that every inch of Vlad's cock was being used to fuck him. That he was really taking this. He was hard again, so soon after the first time and he had no idea why or even how. All he could feel was the throbbing, the pressure between his legs. He buried his face in Vlad's neck, sliding his hands down Vlad's scaled back.

Hands on his scales, legs around his waist, he could smell the boy's returning arousal as Vlad snarled and slammed into Danny's ass. He arched back and shrieked as he began to cum.

Vlad's eyes fell closed and he moaned, long and loud. He shuddered with his orgasm as cum began to flood out of him. But he wasn't finished. He kept thrusting, small thrusts to keep his knot inside, he was far too sensitive and his knot was far too large to try and pull it out. He purred, snarls punctuating his rumble as he kept cumming. He was going to fill Danny with cum and then he was going to splash that cum all over him, mark him, claim him, scent him... Even just the thought brought a new round of spasms, tore them out of him.

Danny squeaked as Vlad bottomed out. His eyes widened as he felt the wave of warmth between his legs. His breath hitched as the slow rubbing against his sensitive insides started again. He felt like he was going to melt as a stream of words fell forth from his lips as he begged Vlad to fill him with cum while whimpering, scared he was going to burst.

Danny's words were cut short when he came for the second time that night. Panting and gasping, his ass tightened around Vlad like he was trying to milk the elder dry.

Vlad snarled, mouth open and fangs bared as he was squeezed tight. His knot swelled before he spurted again, waves and waves crashing through him. It wasn't ending... Vlad's hips snapped forward a few times, trying to thrust, trying to keep going. But he couldn't, collapsing onto Danny.

Vlad propped himself up on his elbows and looked into the boy's sated eyes. And he still twitched, still came. He could feel the boy full, so full of cum it began to leak past the knot to run down Danny's thighs.

A choked whine passed Danny's lips and he tried to wriggle away again, his pleasure-addled brain convinced he really was going to split open. With a tug Vlad's cock slid from between his legs and Danny found himself pinned again. Vlad growled above him as shots of cum landed on his stomach and hips. Danny closed his eyes, feeling the warm sticky sensation on his chest and then another shot on his face. It dripped down his cheek and got in his hair. So hot and it smelled like Vlad. He smelled like Vlad…

Danny's hand strayed between his legs. The smell was driving him wild but he had already cum twice, touching himself wasn't going to help this time.

Vlad purred as he shot cum over Danny, as the spurts finally began to lose force. He looked past hooded eyes to see strands and splashes of cum all over the boy's torso, his neck, his legs... His hands.. his face... Vlad fisted his cock and pumped a few more across Danny's stomach just for good measure before letting himself collapse on the bed next to him.

Vlad laid there, sighing in contentment. Even though his own cum was dripping down his cock to pool on his own belly. It didn't matter, everything in the room smelled like him again. His hoard was here, though it needed organizing. His bitch was here, sated, marked, scented, and completely worn out. All that was missing was some poor animal for him to devour. Vlad purred as he rolled over to trace lines through the cum on Danny's skin.

Danny rubbed his eyes. He felt numb from head to toe and completely exhausted. A burning sensation between his thighs warned that walking would be painful for a least a week. "Fuuuuuuck," he whispered as he watched Vlad leaving clawed handprints in the cum on his tummy. "I can't believe that just happened."

Vlad hummed, a low rumble. "There's a reason I've never taken you in ghost form," he agreed. He gasped as another half-hearted spurt of cum splashed from his shrinking knot. A low moan stole his voice for a moment. "Are you feeling all right?" he asked, breathless. "Not too full, are you?" He slid a hand down Danny's middle to his ass, pressed the blunt edge of a claw against Danny's hole.

"Ahah!" Danny cried out as he sensitive entrance was touched. Cum dripped out and pooled between his legs. His eyelids fluttered and he moaned deeply. "It's not fair how good that feels… oh god..."

Vlad purred, nuzzling Danny's hair. Even his hair was sticky with cum. Vlad inhaled the boy's scent, smelled how completely marred it was with his own mingled in all the right ways. He gasped again, another errant spasm. He was going to be feeling that orgasm for a long time. "And you're going to be feeling it for days," Vlad said. "Every time you sit down. Every little twinge, every movement, every note of sensation you're going to remember this right here..." He drew Danny's hand to his still swollen cock, letting the boy stroke him from knot to tip. He bit his lip as he felt more cum splash.

Danny knew he was being teased but he couldn't help thinking about it. A whole week spent being reminded of the best sex he'd ever had. He stroked Vlad's twitching cock. It was slick with cum. He still couldn't believe it had been in his ass only moments ago. He squeezed it and was rewarded with a spurt of cum. He squeezed it again and opened his mouth, letting it splash on his tongue. He licked his lips, savoring the taste.

"Even if I wasn't hurting I couldn't forget this," Danny said. "I'm going to smell like your cum for weeks... ugh..." He crawled on top of Vlad, not caring that he was getting the elder covered in cum as well.

"That's the idea," Vlad purred as he rolled them both off the bed. They landed in the coins and gems that littered the floor, Vlad taking the force of the fall. His scales protected him from sharp edges and hard gems as he purred. Everything was perfect. Now he wanted to pile his hoard all over himself and doze. Or he could keep hold of the boy in his arms. He didn't even mind the feel of sticky cum everywhere, certainly not when it made his hoard smell just perfect.

Claws sunk into his shoulder and Danny slowly realized that they were actually going to sleep on the pile of gems. He clung to Vlad, staying as far as he could from the pointed facets and cold coins.

Having a half-dragon for a boyfriend was going to be even harder to adapt to than being half-ghost. Wait... Did that make Vlad a third ghost and another third dragon? Danny lifted his head but Vlad was already dozing, his head resting in a pile of uncut diamonds and emeralds. The boy rested his own head on Vlad's chest. At least the elder was warm enough that he wouldn't be needing any blankets. Danny closed his eyes and willed sleep to come. He could really use it right now...

Danny yawned and dropped off listening to the rumbling snores coming from Plasmius.


	3. Things That are Shiny

Vlad Masters has a hoard. The burning question becomes... what's in it? Why these things?

Indeterminate time period (sometime after 'Dragon's Hoard')

'Things That are Shiny' is rated K for plot exposition.

* * *

His first hoard had been a collection of burned stones and scorched tapestries. Or perhaps it began before then, perhaps it was a ring crafted of green stone set with an onyx skull. The Ring of Rage was **his**, was blissfully his for a moment in time. But he'd been forced to give it up, forced to hide it on the hand of another. It wasn't an action he took lightly. No, giving Valerie that ring had been one of the hardest things he'd ever done. And that was even after he'd scented it.

When it was taken, when it was gone, Vlad had been furious. But the Ghost King was not someone he could battle and expect to win. So instead he curled up under the eaves of a haunted house and waited until he could take it back. He never got that chance.

The Crown of Fire was a poor substitute. It wasn't his, didn't smell like his. It would, oh yes he would make sure of it. But then? Holding the Crown in his hands felt like defeat. To assuage that defeat he'd hunted his ruined castle for loose stones, for fallen trinkets, for half-burned tapestries and piled them all before his shattered portal. He scented everything as he placed the Crown on his head and lorded over the blasted heath like a fallen monarch.

But he got better. He learned how to control himself. He learned what he was.

And he learned what made a proper hoard.

* * *

"So what does make a proper hoard?" Danny asked.

Vlad looked up from the gem in his hands. He'd been gazing into the softball-sized chunk of ruby like it was a toy, nothing more than a plaything. He could see Danny's eyes still full of surprise, even envy when they fell on the gem. He moved the gem back and forth, watching Danny's eyes follow it. "That depends on the dragon, doesn't it?"

"Does it?" Danny asked absently.

"Not really," Vlad admitted. He tossed the gem in the air, catching it with deceptively human-looking hands. "There are a number of qualities that make for a proper hoard. Worth, size, shine..."

"Let me guess, and cost."

"Cost plays a part," Vlad admitted. "But cost and worth aren't necessarily the same thing. Take this ruby, for example." He held out the giant ruby, holding it right in front of Danny's face. He could see the want behind his eyes. "Really look at it. It's a mess. It's spiderwebbed with cracks and flaws, its color is non-uniform. Nothing this broken could have grown so big in nature. This was a lab discard. It cost me almost nothing. But its worth on the open market is much more than nothing since there's no chemical difference between a lab created ruby and a natural one."

"Then why do you always play with it?" Danny asked. "When you're bored or stressed or want to intimidate people you'll take that ruby out and play with it for awhile. I thought you'd play with something you like, not with a discard."

Vlad chuckled. "Because cost and worth are not the qualities I value most, Daniel." He held the ruby so it caught the light. Every crack and flaw shined, scattered the light so the ruby almost seemed to glow with a soft red-purple light. "It's shiny."

"Shiny."

"It's very shiny," Vlad said, turning the gem to watch that glow change and shift, grow and darken.

"Shiny."

"Yes, Daniel, it's shiny," Vlad sighed. "We've established that."

"So... everything in your hoard... from the coins to the artifacts to the gems and the everything else... you keep it because it's shiny..."

"Don't look so surprised, Daniel," Vlad scolded. "You've seen the coins in my hoard. Half of them you could use in a vending machine."

"You're one of the richest men in the world, you're a dragon running an international corporation, you have billions of dollars you could spend making a solid gold throne if you wanted and you value 'shiny'?"

"I think most dragons value 'shiny'. Of course, my sample size of three isn't exactly conclusive. But Princess Dora and the brother Prince are both very taken with 'shiny' as well. They quite liked the gift I gave to their realm, an alexandrite the size of your head. No one cared that I'd commissioned it from a lab in Russia, they cared that is was shiny. And changed color, they liked that part too. I hear it changes from green to red every time Aragon steals it from his sister's hoard. And back to green when she takes it away from him."

"Okay, barring this color-changing stone nonsense, shiny? Why not just mirror everything and call it a day? Why are there even coins in here at all?"

Vlad looked thoughtful, contemplating. He hadn't thought of that. But now that he was it seemed distasteful. "Coins are so comfortable," he said. A scheming grin spread over his face as he put his ruby down. "Let me show you..."

Danny gulped as he was grabbed and dragged forcibly out of Vlad's office.


	4. Inconvenience

Despite the rumors a multinational corporation can't be run from an armchair in an underground lab. But Plasmius seems to manage it. How?

Unless his personal assistant is in on his secret.

After Reign Storm but before 'Dragon's Hoard'.

'Inconvenience' is rated K+ for drinking.

* * *

A year and a day.

It wasn't that hard to comprehend. Vlad Masters had everything set up so if he disappeared he couldn't be declared dead, missing, or whatever else until a year and a day after.

So why after four scant weeks spent disappeared and a few small extra irregularities was his board trying to get him ousted?

Who did this.

Who…

* * *

Vlad stormed onto the top floor of the VladCo tower. There were three rooms on this floor, only three, and one barely even counted since his assistant's office was out in the hallway. The conference room stood empty, the board members off wherever they spent their days. The hallway was empty, his assistant's desk looking pristine but well-used. His office…

Well now.

Vlad stood in the doorway to his own office. His eyes flared red and he growled, long and low. "Shelia," he warned.

His chair was not vacant. There were elbows on his desk. A pair of human eyes looked out at him from underneath long lashes. "I knew trying to get you declared incompetent would get you back here," she said.

"You!"

"It worked," she said. Shelia got up from Vlad's chair and smoothed out the lines of her suit. "It was the only thing that worked."

Vlad's eyes blinked back to blue. He pouted at her. "I was busy," he said. "I had things going on."

"Ghost things?" Shelia asked. His attempt at an uncaring look was proof enough. "Mr. Masters, you trusted me with knowledge of your undeath so somebody could cover for you when you disappeared to hunt artifacts or whatever it is you do. But part of that cover was you coming back afterwards. You've been sighted less often than Elvis lately. And then there was the incident with Amity Park disappearing. Do you know how many calls I got demanding interviews? And do you have any idea how many of those calls were the Weekly World News?"

Vlad's pout turned more and more sheepish as she went on. It's true he'd been busy the past couple of months what with being Swallowed and trying to reconcile what he knew now with what he used to be.

"Well?" Shelia demanded.

Vlad took a deep breath. This is what he'd come here for but that didn't make it any easier. "Things have changed, Shelia," he admitted. "Something happened. And these events demonstrate that you need to know about them."

He transformed. She'd seen Plasmius before. But she hadn't seen this. He stripped off a glove and splayed his claws.

"Things have changed," he said. "Physically changed. And until I can determine exactly what's going on they're going to continue to stay changed."

Shelia nodded. She reached out to run a finger along one black claw before pulling back. She looked as uncomfortable as she felt. She covered it by heading to a cabinet and pulling out a bottle of liquid courage, something amber, dark, and Scotch.

This was going to be a long meeting.

* * *

"A dragon," Shelia said.

"Tha's what they tell me," Vlad agreed.

The crystal decanter of Scotch sat mostly empty between them. They'd both had enough. Shelia had enough that she wasn't feeling creeped out by her undead boss's revelation and Vlad had enough that he didn't care about her discomfort.

He knew she'd get over it. She learned to accept his ghost form years ago, she'd accept this.

"A dragon," she repeated. "Ya mean like scaly an' flyin' an' gold-starved… wait, you're gold-starved already."

"I am not 'gold-starved'," Vlad drawled. "There's very little gold in my hoard. Too volatile on the open market."

Shelia snorted as she tried to hide her giggles.

"Smart money is on gems," Vlad said. "Gems and pork bellies. Bacon is awesome."

Shelia raised her glass in toast. "Hear, hear!"

Vlad drank as well. His chest felt oddly warm, more than just the alcohol. He pulled away from the serving table, instead taking the center of the office. "I have the oddest feeling," he admitted.

"That's called 'drinkin' too much'," Shelia said.

"Not that…" Vlad felt something… uncomfortable. Sulfurous, almost. He belched.

Shelia dropped her crystal tumbler and fell over as she tried to get up far too quickly. It wasn't every day that one's boss belched fire. Nor was it every day that that belch resulted in said boss clamping both hands over his mouth trying not to giggle hysterically. "I think you've had enough," she squeaked.

Vlad nodded. He probably had.

This… was going to be inconvenient.


End file.
